Darcy and Chester finally appeared; it seemed as though they were keeping a secret from the rest of them. They all went inside to watch a movie, Saw, but Emma wasn't paying much attention. Chad and Chuck kept laughing at every gory part where someone got killed or hurt, and Chester and Darcy were whispering intently, their fingers lingering in that limbo between holding hands and not. She couldn't help staring at them, wishing Darcy wasn't there. Wishing no one else was there but Chester and herself. Twice she thought she saw them kiss. No, it must have been a trick of the light. Or so she hoped.

That night, Darcy slept over. Emma lay on her bed, Darcy in her sleeping bag, on the floor. Emma sat up. She couldn't keep wondering what had happened that afternoon.
"Darcy?"
"Yeah?"
"What happened with you and Chester?"
"Well," she sat up, "I had to chase him down, to get my sunglasses, ya know? He went over the fence into his backyard, so I followed. We went inside, he poured some lemonade... we sat on his couch, and we... Emma he kissed me! It was the best thing. We made out... three times before we went back to your house."
Emma didn't need to turn the lights on to know that Darcy had a huge smile on her face. She felt sickened, like she was going to throw up.
"So are you two... together?"
"He didn't ask me out... do you think he will? I really like him, Em. And I want him to like me, too."
Emma didn't bother replying; she just lied back down, crying silently to herself, another sleepless night.

Darcy left right after breakfast that morning; she didn't know why, but it seemed like Emma was mad at her. As Darcy walked home, the euphoria from the night before began to wear off. She finally got what she wanted- she had hooked up with Chester. But now she didn't feel like talking to him. Maybe it was because he didn't ask her out? No, that wasn't it. Maybe it was because... the chase was over? Darcy liked the chase: the excitement, wondering when it would happen and fantasizing about how. Now that she had him... but she didn't really have him, did she? They weren't going out- yet. Darcy smiled. She had found her new chase: making Chester see her as a girlfriend instead of just a one afternoon stand.

Chester lie awake in his bedroom. He heard a rumble outside- it was going to storm out. He sighed and pulled the covers over his head, trying desperately to think about yesterday. Why didn't I ask her out? You'd think after they kissed, after they had such good chemistry, asking Darcy out would be a no-brainer. He fully intended to do it, too. But when they were watching the movie he looked over at Emma- and could have sworn he saw hurt in her eyes. But what exactly was she hurt over? It couldn't have been the fact that him and Darcy were getting so close- could it? He didn't think so; Emma didn't like him like that. Or did she? No. He put that fantasy out of his mind. He'd liked Emma before. But he never told her. He'd gone after Manny instead. A stupid mistake. And then the whole thing with Jay. Yes, Chester heard about it, the whole school did. How Emma had given Jay a blowjob. In a van in the woods. The whole thing was ridiculous. It made Chester want to go back in time and beat up his former self for not going after Emma like he'd wanted to. Maybe if he'd told her how he felt in the first place, Emma wouldn't have been pulled into Jay's drama, Jay's disease. And that one word- disease- made Chester separate himself from her. Until he needed her to get to Darcy. But talking to her made him realize just how fun, and nice, and beautiful Emma was. He was so STUPID! He didn't like Darcy- he liked Emma! And now he was stringing Darcy along. Great. He was officially a man-whore.

Chester sat up. Somehow all this thinking wasn't helping him much. He lay back down and forced himself to fall asleep, hoping his dreams would consist of a perfect world where he and Emma could be together without any drama.

That night Emma fell asleep in the rocking chair at 9pm. She didn't feel like going out; she was way too tired. Besides, going out meant she would most likely see Darcy or Chester- or both. Possibly together, holding hands, laughing, and- God forbid- kissing. So Emma tried in vain to get a good night's sleep and put all thoughts of Chester out of her mind.
She woke up 5 times to comfort Jack, each time finding herself trying to look into Chester's bedroom, but the curtain's were drawn, a small parting between them. She saw a glimpse of him once, wandering aimlessly around his room, shirtless. She felt a tingle, and looked away before she allowed herself to fantasize about him.
She woke up around 12, finding Jack gone from his crib and another note on the fridge. This time they were visiting Snake's parents in Manitoba; they were taking a train down there and would be back the following evening. Surprised they trust her home alone, she quickly formulated a plan.
She picked up her cell phone and pressed speed dial number 1.
"Manny? It's Emma... spread the word. I'm having a party tonight."
She hung up, smiling, and spent the rest of the day dreaming about what that night would bring.

Emma was sitting at her mirror, applying mascara, when the doorbell rang. She ran downstairs and opened the door. Manny walked in the living room, carrying a few bags of chips and pretzels. Emma grabbed a bag of Doritos and led Manny to the kitchen, where they set the bags on the counter.
"So?"
"It's all set for tonight," said Manny. "I told everyone to get here around 7:30."
Emma quickly glanced at the clock. "My first house party starts in forty-five minutes!"
The girls emptied the bags of chips into different large bowls, setting them strategically in various areas of the house. They went upstairs and spent the next thirty minutes getting ready.